Microneedling is among the most dangerous skin care fad I have seen in a long time. By far. There is nothing safe, scientific or sane about stabbing needles into your skin for the sake of skin improvement. It is neither sanitary or smart and it is completely devoid of scientific merit.

When I wrote of the dangers of microneedling/ dermarolling some time ago , I discussed not only how this 'procedure' creates scar tissue, destroys collagen and permanently disfigures the skin, but I also discussed how the constant induced scar formation is one way to trigger tumor growth if done in the long-term.

The response to the article was significant, and I received a flood of e-mails from readers describing the demise of their skin from microneedling quackery. I was also glad to hear that many readers cancelled their appointments (either first or return) or tossed their needles in the trash after learning how dangerous this fad is.

After reporting the above issues, the questions that always follow are:

It is never too late to heal your skin, and the first step towards improvement is to stop microneedling. Stop going to those appointments, and if you do it at home throw that device in the trash where it belongs.

The next thing to do is to allow your body to heal on its own. I recommend abstaining from any exfoliation for one month because your skin is going to be raw and damaged from microneedling and taking away any skin (whether live or dead) is going to interfere with the body's natural healing process. 

The only skin care that should be done during the one month break is light serums. You do not want to use anything heavy on your skin because this will trap heat in the skin which will make inflammation worse. Your cleanser should be light and oil based and cleansing should only be done at night. 

And no makeup.

After your skin has shown signs of improvement such as:

Then it is ok to start with light exfoliation again (but I recommend diluting the exfoliant with equal parts water for at least one more month). Followed up with serums and cleansing as usual. 

In skin care, it is tempting to go for that "one crazy trick" which has been touted as the solution to all of your problems and is backed up by some pretty convincing pictures and testimonials. But anything that seems too good to be true probably is, and anything that seems strange or extreme is unlikely to be good for you. More often than not, in skin care when something offers a nice initial result, the long-term consequences are often sitting insidiously beneath the surface. And this is the case with microneedling.